节日是由各种象征符号组成的文化系统。节日象征符号，就是在特定节日习俗中反复出现的、能反映节日文化意义的符号化事物，是节日的形式化表达（能指）与内容意义（所指）的统一体。节日象征符号可分为实物、语言和行为三大类别，同一节日通常包含多种类别的象征符号，它们相互联系、相互作用，构成了一个动态变化的符号系统。云南省玉溪市的米线节是一个历史悠久的地方性节日，有着土主传说、米线、花灯戏等丰富的节日象征符号。在米线节的个案研究中，可以看到时间、空间和民族三大因素对节日象征符号系统的深刻影响，其中时间和空间因素是对所有节日普遍的影响因素，而民族因素则是一个变量，在其他节日中可能替换成其他主体性因素。

通过米线节个案与其他节日的分析对比，可以发现节日本身就是一个象征系统，而节日的发展演变就是受众对该象征系统的多重阐释。节日象征符号就是节日的“语言”，节日的主体是这门语言的主语，行为类符号是谓语，实物类和语言类符号是宾语。节日象征符号系统的三大类别和三大影响因素共同构成了一个模型，该模型能更直观地认识节日发展演变内在的符号逻辑，从而达到理解节日背后的社会和人群的目的。

Festivals are cultural systems composed of various symbolic elements. Festival symbolic elements refer to things that repeatedly appear in specific festival customs and reflect the cultural meaning of the festival. They are the unity of the formal expression (signifier) and the content meaning (signified) of the festival. Festival symbolic elements can be divided into three categories: physical objects, language, and behavior. A festival usually contains multiple categories of symbolic elements, which form a dynamic and changing symbolic system.

The Yunnan Yuxi Rice Noodle Festival is a long-standing local festival with rich festival symbolic elements, such as the landlord legend, rice noodles, and Huadeng opera. Through the case study of the Rice Noodle Festival, it can be seen that the three major factors of time, space, and ethnicity have a profound impact on the festival symbolic system. Among them, time and space factors are universal influencing factors for all festivals, while the ethnicity factor is a variable that may be replaced by other subjective factors in other festivals.

Through the comparative analysis of the Rice Noodle Festival case and other festivals, it can be found that the festival itself is a symbolic system. The development and evolution of the festival is the multiple interpretations of the symbolic system. Festival symbolic elements are the "language" of the festival, and the people of the festival is the “subject” of this language, the behavior category symbols are the “predicate”, and the physical object and language category symbols are the “object”. The three categories of festival symbolic elements and  influencing factors jointly constitute a model which can more intuitively understand the festivals’ operation and development by the logic of symbols. Ultimately, it would be helpful to achieve the goal of understanding the society and people behind the festivals.